Mark formerly served as Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Ross Stores, Inc. During his tenure, he was responsible for all legal affairs including advising the Board of Directors and manaing all major litigation, class and individual employment, intellectual property, privacy and contract cases, and government and private investigations. Mark established a company-wide early dispute resolution program to accelerate disposition of all civil cases through mediation and other alternative dispute mechanisms.
Prior to joining Ross Stores, Mark served as Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary for Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream, Inc. Mark helped design and execute Dreyer’s multi-stage merger transaction with Nestlé, S.A., the world’s largest food company, and subsequently developed ADR and litigation management training for Nestlé attorneys from around the world.
Prior to his general counsel work, Mark spent two decades litigating complex antitrust, commercial, IP, and employment disputes for individual and corporate clients ranging from small businesses to Fortune 100 companies.
Mark began mediating in the late 1990s when first appointed by the federal court in San Francisco to help settle a variety of complex actions. Since retiring as general counsel in 2012, Mark’s private ADR practice encompasses commercial, IP, consumer, insurance, employment, technology, partnership, and real estate disputes. In addition, Mark has taught Mediation Advocacy at the University of California, Davis School of Law, and lectures at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and Haas School of Business on litigation management, intellectual property, and mediation.
Mark earned his B.A. from the University of California, Los Angeles, and his JD from the University of California, Berkeley. He has been appointed a Distinguished Fellow by the International Academy of Mediators and named a Best Lawyer in America for Mediation for three years running by U.S. News – Best Lawyers©.
